FIRST STEP IN BASKETBALL - CATCHING - USE YOUR EYES

See the ball into your hands, that is, once the ball is in the air, focus on it until one or both hands contact it.

Do not point your fingers directly at the ball. If you point them, you are likely to sprain, dislocate, or break a finger or two.

Make sure you have "soft" hands. Imagine the ball striking a brick wall. Imagine it striking a curtain. Like the curtain, you want to absorb the force of the pass. To have soft hands, your wrist, elbow, and shoulder joints must be relaxed. As the ball approaches, extend your arm/s toward the ball, keeping your elbows bent. As your hand/s contact the ball, allow the force of it striking your hand/s to push the arm/s back toward your body.

When catching the ball at chest level or higher, the fingers are pointing upward, with the thumbs touching or almost touching.